Adirondack Family Time™

“No winter lasts forever;  no spring skips its turn.” ~ Hal Borland Alternative text: man snowingshoeing with mountains in background. Text quote from Hal Borland "No winter lasts forever, no spring skips its turn." 

Though it may not feel like spring, things are starting to wake up around the Adirondacks. We’ve even been lucky enough to observe a few bald eagles! We are waiting for maple sap to run so we can begin producing. Our seedlings are starting to sprout. This is also a great time to explore the area’s museums and ski hills before the snow finally melts for good.  Whether you are visiting or taking a staycation, here are a few ideas to keep yourself active during an Adirondack spring break.  Snow Tubing (weather permitting) Lake Placid Jumping Complex   (weekends only) Call 523-8830 Titus Mountain   Snow Tubing, Malone. Call 518-483-3740

"Wilderness complements and completes civilization.  I might say that the existence of wilderness  is also a compliment to civilization.  Any society that feels itself too poor to afford  the preservation of wilderness  is not worthy of the name of civilization." ~ Edward Abby, Down the River

Since ____ New York State has celebrated everything maple related with its annual Maple Weekends the last two weekends in March. This year, 2015, the dates are March 21-22 and March 28-29. These events encourage maple producers of all sizes to open their doors and provide individuals the opportunity to see how maple is made from tree sap collection to dress up the pancakes on the table.  For the second year, the Tri-Lakes/High Peaks region of the Adirondacks is planning to pull out all the stops with its own special Adirondack Maple Weekend March 28-29.. Maple producers in Tupper Lake, Paul Smiths, Wilmington, Lake Placid, Saranac Lake, Keene and beyond are adding extra incentives to the normal maple sap tours. Enjoy family fun activities at Tupper Lake's The Wild Center, The Paul Smith’s VIC, Wilmington's Whiteface Mountain, Lake Placid's Mount Van Hoevenberg Olympic Center Cross Country Ski Center, Saranac Lake's Mark Twain Works, Lake Placid's Cornell Ex

Make this easy shamrock to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. Write a message on it and give it to a friend. Make a whole bouquet for a table arrangement. Use a pipe cleaner for a stem and hang it from the door! Happy St. Patrick's Day! © Diane Chase, author of Adirondack Family Time: Tri-Lakes and High Peaks (Your Four-Season Guide to Over 300 Activities) for the towns of Lake Placid, Saranac Lake, Jay/Upper Jay, Wilmington, Keene/Keene Valley which is available online or bookstores/museums/sporting good stores. Diane is currently working on the second guidebook in the four-book series of Adirondack Family Activities.

To celebrate National Pi(e) Day  on March 14, make your favorite dessert or this quick refrigerator magnet! Materials: bottle cap tooth pick small beads (the color of your pie.. red for raspberry pie, blue for blueberry pie) clear drying glue small magnet no larger than the back of the bottle cap small pieces of tan felt   Instructions • Using the bottle cap as a pattern draw and cut out a circular piece of felt (to use as the bottom crust) • Glue the "bottom crust" into the bottle cap. • Pour a small bit of glue into the bottle cap lined with felt and pour a small amount of the beads on top. • Mix the glue and beads together using the tooth pick. • Continue to add more beads and glue until the bead/glue mixture is level with the top of the bottle cap • Cut small strips of felt and glue over the beads, mimicking the top of a pie. • Let dry • glue small magnet to back of bottle top and let dry Place on fridge! This makes a great party favor that is easy a

"As a man tramps the woods to the lake he knows he will find pines and lilies, blue herons and golden shiners, shadows on the rocks and the glint of light on the wavelets, just as they were in the summer of 1354, as they will be in 2054 and beyond. He can stand on a rock by the shore and be in a past he could not have known, in a future he will never see. He can be a part of time that was and time yet to come." ~ William Chapman White, Adirondack Country (page 264)